Start from 35 curated places around Annecy, FR, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
La Ciboulette
Annecy's most decorated restaurant — a Michelin star since 2007 under chef Georges Paccard, who opened here in 1986 and treats Savoyard ingredients at the level they deserve. The lake fish (omble chevalier, féra) get the full classical French technique treatment: precise sauces, perfect timing, the kind of execution that makes you realize you've been eating these fish badly everywhere else. The room is formal but not stiff, and the wine list is a masterclass in Savoie's underrated white wines.
L'Esquisse
The newer Michelin star in Annecy — a contemporary bistro format run by chef Stéphane Dattrino that changes the menu seasonally and sources hyper-locally from mountain producers and the lake. The cooking is more modern and lighter than La Ciboulette, leaning into the alpine terroir's vegetable and herb side alongside the inevitable lake fish. The room is smaller and more casual than you'd expect for a starred restaurant, with a genuinely warm atmosphere.
Trails & outdoors
Mont Veyrier and Mont Baron
The forested summit ridge on the east side of the lake — Mont Veyrier (1,291m) and its slightly higher neighbour Mont Baron (about 1,300m) — with one of the best aerial panoramas of Annecy and the full lake. A cable car climbed up here until 1984; it was later dismantled, the ruined upper station still stands, and the old base station in Annecy-le-Vieux now houses the Cinémathèque des Pays de Savoie. Today the summit is reached on foot, most directly from the Col des Contrebandiers. Clear mornings turn the lake into a blue mirror below.
La Tournette
The highest summit bordering Lac d'Annecy (2,351m) and one of the finest full-day hikes in Haute-Savoie — a serious mountain ascent via the Refuge de la Tournette and the summit chain (fixed cables and metal handholds in the final section). The upper section is genuinely vertiginous; the summit view, which encompasses the entire lake from directly above, is one of those views that people describe for years. Not a casual hike: this is a committed mountain day.
Things to do
Lake Swimming — Public Beaches
Annecy's public beaches are a central part of life here rather than a tourist amenity — the Plage d'Annecy-le-Vieux (east of the old town) and the Plage Impérial (northwest, near the Impérial Palace) are the main city beaches, both free and well-maintained with changing facilities. The water quality is exceptional — consistently among the cleanest lake water in Europe — and the mountain backdrop makes the swimming experience genuinely extraordinary. In clear water you can see the bottom at 10 meters.
Paragliding from Col de la Forclaz
Tandem paragliding from the Col de la Forclaz above the east shore of the lake — launching from 1,150m and soaring on thermals above the water before landing at the beach in Doussard at the lake's southern tip, 45 minutes later. The flight path crosses the full length of the southern half of the lake and the aerial perspective of the water, the surrounding mountains, and the Annecy city visible at the north end is one of the most beautiful paragliding flights in France. Multiple operators run tandem flights year-round.
Landmarks & sights
Palais de l'Île
The 12th-century island prison that sits in the middle of the Thiou canal and has become the most photographed building in Annecy — possibly in all of Savoie. At dawn, before the tour groups arrive, the pale stone building and its reflection in the motionless canal make for one of those rare scenes where the cliché photograph actually does the subject justice. The interior has been converted into a history museum covering Annecy's past as a Savoyard county seat, and the warren of low rooms and original stonework is worth the entry price. But even if you skip the museum, spend ten minutes at the canal edge here.
Château d'Annecy
The castle above the old town — a 13th-to-16th-century structure on the promontory that overlooks the canal quarter and the lake beyond. It was the seat of the Counts of Geneva, then the Dukes of Savoie, and today houses the Musée-Château with collections covering Alpine natural history (the mountain ecology section is excellent), decorative arts, and a contemporary art space in the old towers. The view from the castle esplanade over the old town and down to the lake is one of the best free viewpoints in Annecy.